Kristine Yaffe, MD
Kristine Yaffe, MD, is a Professor of Psychiatry, Neurology and Epidemiology, the Roy and Marie Scola Endowed Chair and Vice Chair of Research in Psychiatry at UCSF. Dr. Yaffe is dually trained in neurology and psychiatry and completed postdoctoral training in epidemiology and geriatric psychiatry, all at UCSF. In addition to her positions at UCSF, Dr. Yaffe is the Chief of Neuropsychiatry and the Director of the Memory Disorders Clinic at the San Francisco Veteran’s Affairs Medical Center. In her research, clinical work, and mentoring, she has worked towards improving the care of patients with cognitive disorders and other geriatric neuropsychiatric conditions.
Dr. Yaffe's research has focused on the predictors and outcomes of cognitive decline and dementia in older adults. She is particularly interested in identifying novel risk factors for cognitive impairment that may lead to strategies to prevent cognitive decline. Dr. Yaffe is the principal investigator of 8 NIH grants as well as several other grants, and she has published over 450 peer-reviewed articles (H-index=118) in numerous prestigious journals including the Lancet, BMJ, JAMA, and NEJM. Dr. Yaffe also edited a book published by Oxford Press, “Chronic Medical Disease and Cognitive Aging: Toward a Healthy Body and Brain.” In 2014, she was recognized as one of Thomas Reuters World’s Most Influential Scientific Minds and honored by the American Association for Geriatric Psychiatry with the Distinguished Scientist Award. Dr. Yaffe was recently awarded the prestigious Potamkin Prize by the American Academy of Neurology.